I tried 6 budget-friendly frozen pizzas from Aldi, and found some real winners under $5
Each Mama Cozzi's pie was tasty, but I was disappointed by the Tavern-style extra-loaded supreme.
The rising-crust four-cheese pie would've been my fave if I didn't try the stone-baked veggie pizza.
Frozen pizza can be an easy, budget-friendly meal — but it doesn't need to taste as cheap as it sounds.
Fortunately, Aldi has an array of budget-friendly frozen options under its Mama Cozzi's label that are under $10. However, with so many varieties (including seasonal flavors), it's hard to decide which ones are worth buying.
So, I tried six frozen pizzas from Aldi and ranked them from my least favorite to my top pick. Here's how they stacked up.
The Tavern-style extra-loaded supreme pizza sounded promising.
With "extra loaded" in the name, I was expecting to be impressed. The thin-crust pie is topped with bell peppers, Italian sausage, red onion, pepperoni, and mushrooms.
When I removed this pizza from the box, though, it looked like it was only topped with cheese. Upon closer inspection, I saw a smattering of toppings buried beneath the shreds. I was curious to see how it'd cook.
I was a bit confused by this pie.
The photo on the pizza box didn't look anything like my final pie.
Once cooked, the toppings were nearly invisible aside from a few peppers and pepperoni pieces sticking out on the edges.
The cheese got wonderfully golden, but the peppers and meat pieces below it didn't crisp up much.
All in all, this pizza had a decent flavor, but not enough toppings.
This was still better than frozen pizzas I've tried from many other brands, it was my least favorite of the group.
Mama Cozzi's French-bread pepperoni pizza was pretty affordable.
This was great, but I'm not sure it hits my craving for pizza.
This felt more like a toasted, open-faced pepperoni sandwich than a pizza. The bread was crunchy, but I found myself missing a more typical crust.
Plus, this seemed to have far less cheese than any other pizzas I tried. I could see way too much of the sauce peeking through the layer of shredded mozzarella.
Still, I enjoyed eating this and thought the pepperoni (made with pork, beef, and chicken) tasted exceptionally good.
I felt confident I'd enjoy the original thin supreme pizza.
For what it's worth, I lived on Mama Cozzi's original thin-crust pizzas throughout the pandemic.
Although they cost more now than they did in 2021, they're still a great value at $3.19 a pie for three servings of pizza.
For this taste test, I tried the supreme variety that comes with pepperoni, sausage, green pepper, and onion.
There were loads of toppings on this pie.
This pizza was pretty impressive as it seemed loaded with all of the aforementioned toppings. Each bite seemed to have pepperoni or sausage.
The cracker-like crust wasn't anything to write home about in terms of flavor, but it was the perfect crunchy conduit for the toppings.
Mama Cozzi's flatbread pizza with pepperoni and mozzarella had potential.
Flatbread pizzas can be hit or miss. Sometimes their crusts get soggy or too crisp, but they can be delicious when done well.
This rectangular flatbread pizza from Mama Cozzi's that I tried is made with both sliced and diced pepperoni, plus fresh mozzarella.
I found myself pleasantly surprised by this pizza.
My very first bite surprised me. The crust was buttery and flaky in a light, airy, beautiful way.
The ratio of cheese to meat seemed well-balanced, and the different pepperoni cuts helped the toppings feel more evenly distributed.
The rectangular shape made the pizza fairly easy to eat, which I also liked. All in all, this pizza was delicious.
The rising-crust four-cheese pizza seemed like it was going to be a bit overwhelming.
The most indulgent pizza of them all seemed to be Mama Cozzi's four-cheese pizza with a rising crust described as "fluffy" and "full."
Toppings include Asiago, Parmesan, Romano, and mozzarella and, in terms of ounces, this pizza was the heaviest.
It cost me $4.19 and has six servings.
Its crust was indeed fluffy and full.
As basically promised by the box, the crust was the softest and pillowiest of the pies on this list.
I tasted notes of each individual cheese atop a slightly sweet red sauce. Asiago and Parmesan added a nice salty flavor variety to the pie, too.
I also found it to be incredibly filling — after two slices, I was satisfied.
It was fantastic, even eaten cold and leftover, the next day. This would've been my favorite if not for one dark horse …
Mama Cozzi's stone-baked veggie pizza caught me by surprise.
Mama Cozzi's stone-baked veggie pizza with an Italian crust seemed loaded with red onion, spinach, grilled peppers, and grilled zucchini.
I wasn't super excited to try it since I really enjoy meat and was a bit turned off by how little mozzarella appeared to be on the pie based on the photo on the box.
The pizza cost me $3.99 and comes with four servings.
I wasn't expecting this pie to be my favorite.
Although I was skeptical, this pizza blew me away.
The crust tasted buttery (though not as buttery as the flatbread's) and was very flavorful with Italian herbs and a fluffy-yet-crunchy texture.
There was so little sauce that I barely noticed it, but I didn't find myself needing more. The pizza wasn't dry, and I liked that the vegetables on top were spread to the edge of the crust.
This pizza's toppings were the tastiest and most colorful. With so many textures and flavors, the slight lack of cheese didn't bother me after all.
All in all, this pizza was my top pick.
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